Visual Elements

Visual Elements

World

Open world/Roam or sandbox are terms for video games where a player can move freely through a virtual world and is given considerable freedom in regards to how or when to approach particular objectives, as opposed to other video games that have a more linear structure to their gameplay. 

NPC - Activity

A non-player character (NPC), sometimes known as non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any character that is not controlled by a player. In video games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence.

Use characters

A common method or arbitrating the capabilities of different game characters is to assign each one to a character class. A character class aggregates several abilities and aptitudes, and may also detail aspects of background and social standing, or impose behavior restrictions.

GUI/UI - Graphical User Interface/User Interface

User Interface,  refers to the methods (mouse control, keyboard control) and interfaces (inventory screen, map screen) through which a user interacts with your game. UX, or User Experiance, refers to how intuitive and enjoyable those interactions are.

Full Motion Video (FMV)

Video that changes the image 30 frames per second (30FPS). Motion pictures are run at 24 fps, which is the minimum frequency required to eliminate the perception of moving frames and make the images appear visually fluid to the eye.
TV video generates 30 interlaced frames per second, which is actually transmitted as 60 half frames per second.
Video that has been digitized and stored in the computer can be displayed at varying frames rates, depending on the speed of computer, if the computer is slow the movement will get jerky and unpleasant for humans eyes.

Perspectives

2D | Side Scroller (Direct) 

This game type is usually used for jumping games (called platformers), but can also be any side-scrolling shooter.

2D | Side Scroller (Angled) 

Almost all of these games involve the player controlling a warrior that brawls his way through an adventure. Most of them are multi-player.

2D | Top-Down (Direct) 

This game type usually involves controlling a character or vehicle that can move in four directions, but can also be a scrolling game where the players can only move the screen in a single direction like when piloting a flying vehicle.

2D | Top-Down (Slight Angle) This is practically the same as 2D Top-Down, but the sprites and objects tend to overlap each other. This style allows for better graphics, but loses a fraction of player control due to a slight confusion in depth.

2D & 3D Hybrid | Top-Down (Isomorphic) 

In this game style, the sprites are two-dimensional while the terrain is three-dimensional. Also, the perspective is adjusted 45 degrees from normal top-down games on both the left-right axis, and the top-bottom axis.

3D | Third Person 

This game type shows some angle from outside of the player’s character. Usually this angle is over-the-shoulder, but can be any other angle or all angles depending on the control style. Usually, this involves the game interpreting what angle it thinks the player wants, which reduces player control significantly.

3D | First Person 

This perspective means the player is always looking through the character’s eyes. It allows the player to have far better control, but limits the player’s ability to see due to the camera angle.